Founder and Chairman of Palo Alto Software and bplans.com, on twitter as Timberry, blogging at timberry.bplans.com. His collected posts are at blog.timberry.com. Stanford MBA. Married 46 years, father of 5. Author of business plan software Business Plan Pro and www.liveplan.com and books including his latest, 'Lean Business Planning,' 2015, Motivational Press. Contents of that book are available for web browsing free at leanplan.com .
If you are a person with no credit rating, you will need to establish one before you will be able to get a small business loan. Basically, you establish a credit rating by buying things on credit and paying back the money you owe. Your loan repayment history plays a big part in establishing your credit rating, but all your "credit" dealings make up the history that's used to determine your credit rating.
Banks want to see a history of successful borrowing anytime they make a loan. That includes loans for your business. Unfortunately, many businesses don’t have any history of borrowing (especially new businesses), so lenders look at your personal credit scores instead. If you’ve got good credit, that’s a good sign that you’ll handle the business loans well. If you’ve got bad credit, lenders will be more skittish about lending. If your credit is “thin” because you haven’t borrowed much in the past (or if it’s in need of some repair), you may need to build your credit before lenders are likely to approve you for a loan.

Some franchisors report being approached by financial brokers--historically more interested in big deals--to put together large pools of money using SBA and private funds. These funds would be available to franchisees through the franchisors like a trust fund. Groups of smaller banks with funds to invest would contribute to the fund from all over the country.

To get a good estimate of costs, the first thing we recommend doing is asking the franchisor for their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD) early on in the process. It’s a good idea to have an accountant and lawyer review the FDD with you before you sign any paperwork or hand over any money. A franchisor is legally required to give you the FDD at least 14 days before you buy a franchise.
Never start a business as a “sole proprietorship,” which can result in your personal assets being at risk for the debts and liabilities of the business. You will almost always want to start the business as an S corporation (giving you favorable flow through tax treatment), a C corporation (which is what most venture capital investors expect to see), or a limited liability company (LLC). None of those are particularly expensive or difficult to set up. My personal preference is to start the business as an S corporation, which can then easily be converted to a C corporation as you bring in investors and issue multiple classes of stock.
Biz2Credit can help entrepreneurs secure franchise business financing through its network of hundreds of lenders willing to grant loans. We have helped secure franchise loans for the owners of Dunkin' Donuts, Johnny Rockets, Subway, and other successful franchisees. Veterans, which are increasingly becoming franchisees, can refer to Biz2Credit's page on franchise loans for veterans.
If you do decide you’re going to need space, consider the number of employees you’re going to need and the equipment that will fill the space—chairs, photocopying machines, a fridge, a coffee machine, a reception area, a meeting room, and so on. Furthermore, how quickly do you expect to grow? If rapid growth is in the books, rent a space where there is room for growth and so that you don’t have to change your business address.
You also will need to file certain forms to fulfill your federal and state income tax obligations. The forms you need are determined by your business structure. A complete list of the forms each type of entity will need can be found on the SBA website. You can also find state-specific tax obligations there. Some businesses may also require federal or state licenses and permits to operate. You can use the SBA's database to search for licensing requirements by state and business type.
More Franchise Loans, More Franchise Launches, More Franchise Revenue. In today's economy many top franchises face a significant challenge: access to funding. With ample interest from entrepreneurs ready to open new locations or expand existing ones, the difficulty of accessing capital significantly slows the execution of opening such franchises, costing both the franchisee and franchisor time and money.

Register your business with the Vets First Verification Program to be eligible for special opportunities to do business with the government. Small businesses that are owned and controlled by veterans and service-disabled veterans, and verified through the program, may also be given priority when competing for federal contracts. Learn how to apply, and find out which documents you will need to submit. You can also find VA-certified business counselors in your state for free help.

The International Franchise Association maintains a directory of franchises that are approved by the SBA to receive SBA funding. Each franchisor in the directory is required to submit a Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD) with information about its company to the SBA for approval. Working with a company that is pre-approved by the SBA will expenditure the process of obtaining an SBA loan for your franchise.

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